Ever Dream
by LeontillyBalambgirl
Summary: What if dreams were signs?Fates way of showing you your true path? When Squall experiences strangely vivid dreams about a beautiful,mysterious girl in danger he uncovers their connection runs much deeper than it seems.She may even be his destiny[AU SxR]
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: don't own any original names or locations of FF8. But everything else is mine!!!(well i sort of borrowed the title from a friend, who borrowed it from a song, but still!) Muhahahhaha **

**A/N: Hiya. Yes another story. I love stories. This one is a little weird. A clearer summary, basically it is all set in the past Squall starts to experience very mysterious dreams about a girl in danger and eventually as the dreams become more real and more terrifying he decides he may be seeing it all for a reason….is he supposed to save her.**

**I warn you this is just a prologue and all seems a little weird, but trust me there is a point. And it will get better and all, this is an introduction.( some concepts such as the sorceresses and the Julia and laguna thing and some ages etc have been changed to fit the story so they are not supposed to be like in the game. ) but give it a go! As always , I hope you will like it, and if some people do I will continue it and if no one likes it I will not. Whatever you guys want. So let me know what you think…and welcome to 'ever dream'. much love xx**

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**-Prologue-**

_**T**he power of a sorceress is one passed down through generations, from mother to daughter. Legend has it that there are many bearing the gift from many bloodlines in every generation. In some it is obvious, in others it is easily hidden and in each and every woman the sorceress power manifests in different ways. Some have visions of the future, others wield powerful spells and dark magic while some have the ability to controlling healing and white magic and other spells and blessings. The legend also states that each sorceress has a Knight, a man whose love for her would protect her from all danger._

Julia Heartilly was a sorceress. But something set her apart from all the others, a dark secret of her ancestry. The first of her ancestors known to receive the gift was Alyana, a powerful Baroness. But supposedly Alyana was corrupted by the power and it drove her to madness. She became wicked and cruel and began to harm other sorceresses hoping to take their power. It is believed that at 21 she passed the gift on to her baby daughter, although this seemed only to intensify her thirst for magic. She already wielded powerful dark and evil spells and she could not be defeated. As a dying act, one of her victims cursed her.

Each and every one of her descendants would be corrupted by evil to the point of madness and eventually death, unless they could break the curse. The only way to break the curse centred around a spiritual festival, twilight eve. Twilight eve was the middle day of spring on which people believed the Gods sent a shooting star if they were pleased with the people of the land. To break the curse a sorceress must share true loves kiss on the Twilight eve of her 21st year, the moment the star trailed the sky. Sharing true loves kiss at that moment would confirm the sorceresses love as her Knight and the protection and Love of her Knight would save the sorceress from corruption, breaking the curse on her and the bloodline. Alyana scoffed at the witches curse, but with her very dying breath the witch cursed that no one from such an evil ancestor could ever find true love.

Eventually, shortly after this, Alyana was hunted and killed. In her attempt yet failure to escape her attackers, she abandoned her daughter leaving her only with a pendant of a blood red stone which was to protect her. The child was taken in by a local family who had no idea of the childs heritage and neither the family nor the daughter knew of the curse. When she reached 16 the family whom had raised her married her off to a wealthy lord, but he was a cruel and brutal man. When she reached 19, she fell pregnant but she died giving birth to a daughter.

It seemed that the curse was real, and Julias whole family was plagued with bad luck and difficult circumstances. None of her ancestors managed to break the curse, although it was recorded and passed through the generations, as was the pendant which seemed always to find the next descendant of the line. Some of the sorceresses died before reaching their 21st year, and others fell victim to the curse and became evil and died of madness or persecution.

Julias own mother was the wife of a wealthy lord, whom she married at the age of 16, after her father died. She had never known her mother and her father refused to speak of her.

Julias mother gave birth to Julia when she was 20, but when her husband discovered her true heritage as a sorceress he executed her and tried to abandon the baby Julia.  
Luckily she was taken in and raised by the kindly couple who raised her in a small house in Deling city.

When they found her, they knew immediately who she was because she carried the distinctive red pendant which her mother had always worn, but they knew how cruel the lord was, and they feared for the baby so they kept her.  
Julia dearly loved them as if they were her own parents. But when she was 18 she learned of her true ancestry and the terrible curse. Ironically on the day she found out, when she sat weeping in a field of flowers, she encountered a patrolling soldier on leave for one day while the General of his army visited the King. His name was Laguna and he was a kind man with long dark her and sparkling green eyes. As fate would have it they spent the whole day talking. He spoke of how he wished to leave the army and wished to write and settle down. Julia was unable to tell him that she was a sorceress as she knew that sorceresses were hunted by the soldiers, but she told him all most everything else of herself.

But when the day became evening he had to leave, and withdrew with his army. For the next few months Julia thought of nothing else, and secretly she wondered if he was the true love the curse had spoken of. It seemed fate was on her side though, as a year later Laguna returned, discharged from the army due to injury.

When Julia discovered his return she was overjoyed, and her rising fear about the curse subsided when the two fell deeply in love. But soon Laguna received a mysterious letter and began to act distantly and strangely. Shortly after that he left, disappearing in the dead of night. The thing he left was a note apologising to Julia for what he had done but the note spoke of how he felt he must save someone called 'Ellone'. Julia had no idea what this meant but she was determined Laguna would return and so she waited almost a year.

But Laguna did not return, and with her 21st year approaching and the curse worrying her more and more, she accepted a proposal from a wealthy Land owner, Lord caraway. Caraway was a surprisingly kind and fair man, and soon Julia found herself falling for him. Shortly after the marriage she became pregnant and gave birth to a beautiful baby girl in the first month of her 21st year and she named the daughter Rinoa, after the woman who had raised her.

At this point, she knew she had no choice but to tell her husband of the terrible curse and she was thankful for the understanding he showed. At the twilight eve festival, Caraway took Julia to the hills, and the moment the shooting star danced across the midnight sky they shared a kiss. Julia believed this had broken the curse, however over the next year she began to feel the power within her grow and the first signs of madness appeared. Eventually bother her and Caraway grew to realise he was not her true love. Both knew it was inevitable that Julia would soon turn, the madness devouring her completely. In her last moment of purity and good, she begged her husband to take Rinoa away and raise her knowing of her magic but not burdening her with knowledge of the curse untill she was 18. She then tearfully begged her husband to kill her, before the madness could destroy the person she was. Reluctantly Caraway fulfilled her wish with one quick strike and he ran with their daughter. But he was chased, the soldiers of the town who were determined to stop the sorceress power from existing.

He eventually escaped to the nearby town of Timber were he was able to live peacefully. He loved his daughter dearly, but was a haunted man, troubled by the fate of the woman he had loved and fearful of how this curse would affect their daughter. But still he raised her knowing of her magic from an early age, and he passed down the family heirloom of the bloodstone necklace, but respectful of his wifes wishes he told her nothing of the curse.  
But just when Rinoa turned 5, Caraway learned he was sick. Knowing he had not much time to live, he wrote the legend of the curse down and hid it, along with a letter explaining many things he wanted his daughter to know.

But the night he finished the letter was the night the army found him, still searching for the descendants of the sorceresses. On the arrival of the army, he told his daughter to run to their neighbour and hide but in panic he forgot to give her what he had written.

The soldiers raided his house and demanded he gave up the child but he refused. This lead ultimately to his death. He knew that now his daughter would grow up never knowing of the curse and with his last breath he prayed that she could still overcome it somehow, he prayed she would not suffer the same fate as her mother. He prayed she would never be caught.

**-15 years later-**

"Go, run!" cried a woman, as she piled bottles, charms and some folded clothes into the arms of a younger woman

"I can not just leave, what about you…" the younger woman sobbed, shaking her head frantically, her long black hair swaying in the wind.

"I said open up" called a loud male voice, accompanied by a pounding on the door "I know you are in there"

"Forget me child." the woman placed a kiss on the forehead of the young woman "save yourself. You know what will happen if they find you, you must escape. I swore that I would protect you and I will not fail now. You must run Rinoa!"

Tearfully the girl nodded "I will never forget you" she whispered to the woman, before running away into the dark winters night.

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**Ok there we go! please don't flame me. See I know it is a little shaky, but it is supposed to be confusing at the moment. The Laguna thing and his disappearance is explained later on as is much much else, please let me know what you think.if anyone wants me to i will continue Thanks guys xx much love. xx leontilly  
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	2. Charms

**Disclaimer: usual**

**a/n: alrightys. Another chapter. Just before you read this I want to say completely forget the timescale and laguna and squall relationship of 8 and all okay, don't think of the laguna/Julia/raine/ellone things in terms of the game time scale as this one is different and will become much clearer later on.**

**But on with this chapter. So, like in the end of 1, we are still 15 years on from the prologue and we now meet some of our main characters. Hope you enjoy. And thanks to r, Selphie ivy, crazy turkey, zellycat, renegade seraph, leonhartilly, lilnaych,that belle and EmoDiva. You guys rock! Hope everyone enjoys this chapter. This is hort, it is just so you can learn a little about squall and stuff. There wil be more soon if you guys want it xx**

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**S**quall Leonhart awoke to the sound of flute music floating through the house.

"Zell is practicing again" he sighed to himself

Squall was the son of Laguna Loire, a legendary soldier who disappeared-presumed dead-when Squall was just a child. Since then he had been raised by a close friend of Lagunas, Lady Dincht.

Lady Dincht was a kindly woman, who had already taken in a young orphan to raise as her own. She had been expecting some friends to arrive on a ship form Balamb to Esthar, and sadly storms crashed the ship. The lone survivor was a boy whom washed up on shore. With no one else to claim him, she eventually adopted him as her own. This child, Zell Dincht, had practically grown up as Squalls brother as they were close as children. When Laguna had disappeared, squall was only 5, both Zell and Lady Dincht had been only too happy to take Squall in until his father returned. But he never did.

15 years had passed and squall had grown up, his whole life spent with the Dinchts. Laguna was a highly regarded Soldier and a popular man in Esthar, but he was one of Squalls least favourite people. Laguna had gone off to war and never returned and Squall never really forgave him for abandoning him. His mother had died in childbirth, and Laguna was always busy, even when Squall was just a baby. Then one day he just left and never returned., As Squall grew older it bothered him less and less, but he always became resentful when people talked of Lagunas reputation as a great soldier. Perhaps he was a great soldier, but in squalls opinion he was far from a great man. Squall was 21 now, he had lived his whole life without a father, so he did not need one now, he couldn't care less if Laguna ever returned. But whenever he said this to people, they reacted as if it was strange. A lot of people thought Squall was strange. He was considered to be somewhat anti-social and cold. Most young men of his age were married, betrothed or at least looking for possible brides, but Squall was not. He preferred being on his own.

"Good morning Zell" Squall said when he entered the room "still practicing I see"

"Yes" Zell nodded enthusiastically "I am becoming quite good, must you not say so?"

"I must say….I find it to be a little early" Squall sighed, raising an eyebrow.

Zell and Squall were very close friends, and Zell was about the only person Squall trusted.

"Good morning" Lady Dincht said entering the room "What are your plans for the day boys ?"

"oh, I believ the market is in town today, perhaps it would be nice to visit it" Zell said "Shall we Squall?"

Squall sighed. Why did Zell always have to be so enthusiastic "I Suppose"

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The Market Square was packed full of stalls selling various produce. Some selling jewels, some fine clothes, some fine foods. Squall never really understood markets. The people selling the goods were usually wealthy and not in need of the money they got from sales, they just wanted it. And those who were poor and may actually need the money could never provide goods of a good enough quality to impress the rich and wealthy enough, so they made no money.

"These things are pointless" Squall muttered to his friend

"Are you ever happy Squall?" Zell sighed "We really should find you a wife"

"I do not want a wife. I am happy by myself. I do not need anyone else"

On the road back form the market, Zell and Squall encountered a lone young woman sitting on the roadside. A small selection of beautiful woven charms lay in front of her.

"Excuse me sires" She said quietly "Would you care for a charm"

Zell stopped and examined the charms. He was a huge believer in sorcery and magic, but to Squall it was nothing but a myth, nonsense.

The Legend of the sorceress prevailed still, but now Sorceresses were viciously hunted. Squall presumed this is why this woman had covered her ace with beautiful covered scarves. But still, she was risking a lot. Squall, or any other by passer could have easily turned her in to the authorities and she would be burnt for sure.

" Zell" he sighed "do not start with all the charms and magic again"

"Do not be so sceptical. You could do with some faith, something to believe in."

"I believe in what is real. Magic is not"

"How do you know" muttered the girl "How can you be so sure."

"Ignore him" Zell said to the girl as he picked up a small blue charm "And what is this for?"

"That will bring you luck, Sir"

"Excellent. I will take it" Zell said, producing some gold coins

"Do not be ridiculous. It does nothing. It is junk. This wench is after your money"

"Perhaps" Zell sighed "But look at the girl, she looks as if she has not eaten for weeks. And it will do us no harm"

"Thank you Sir" the girl said, lowering her head. She took the charm and chanted something over it, before handing it back to Zell "you will have luck from this day forward"

Zell took the charm, then he and Squall turned to leave, but the girl called out to them

"Excuse me" she picked up a small red charm, which she attached to the stem of a red rose that had been laying in front of her. She then stood up and handed the rose and charm to Zell "Take this for your kindness" she said 'it will bring you love, peace and happiness"

Then Squall and Zell watched as she gathered her things, and fled down the path with them.

"Damn witches" Squall sighed "she is lucky I did not turn her in"

Zell laughed slightly and handed the charmed rose to Squall "I think you should take this. You could use it. If anyone in the world needs love and happiness Squall, it's you."

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**Like I said pretty short, but next chapter will be quite long as we get more into it.so i wonder what is the significance of the rose and the charm ho hum. i'll give bubblegum to anyone who can guess who the mysterious girl who sold them the charm was. lol! yes, i hope you will read on. Review if you want and let me know what you think. Hope you liked it.**


	3. Running

**Disclaimer: I don't own final fantasy 8...and they made me give squall back L**

**A/N: Howdy! Here is another chapter. Lol sorry ti took a while, I got kinda writers block on this story, but then I had total inspiration last night and wrote the next few chapters tehehe. Hmm oh yeh italics is the dream. Many thanks to those who reviewed last chapter, acho111, lionhearted, r, Selphie ivy, that belle, lilnaych, rinny Leonheart, teresa pham, hououza, zellycat and EmoDiva. More chapters for ya…enjoy xx!**

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**R**inoa headed back to the abandoned old house in which she had stayed the night before. She knew she couldn't stay much longer, she had to keep moving unless she wanted to get caught. But she was used to being on the run by now, she had been for large parts of her life. She had always known what danger she was in, it was just worse now. Sorceresses had always been hated and feared, and to some extent always hunted. About 15 years ago, a time Rinoa vaguely remembered, when she was only about 5 or so, there was a giant hunt in which lots of her kind was wiped out. She had luckily escaped, and after that it seemed the soldiers turned their attention to other things, obviously knowing only a handful of sorceresses had survived.

However, about a year ago, the sorceress hunt flared up again and became much more intense. Rumours were flying that there was a new leader controlling the military who had ordered that every single sorceress was hunted ruthlessly. It would seem he had some kind of vendetta against sorceresses, although no one knew who this man was.

The last 5 months had been hell because of this. It was moving towards the end of winter, but Rinoa had struggled to survive those cold months, sleeping in old abandoned houses and travelling in the dead of night. But still, she knew to some extent she was lucky. It was the first month of the year, just days after her 21st birthday, a year few other sorceresses made it to as many were hunted and killed young, so their powers could not develop. But she doubted she would make it to see another winter, it was inevitable that eventually they would find her and kill her. She could not run forever.

She set her things down and took out the money she had made that day. It was not much,but maybe she could live of it for a few days. She was lucky she had encountered someone willing to buy from her, who had not just turned her in. She hoped her charm really did bring him luck.

She lit the small fire and warmed her hands, then she settled down, leaning her head against the wall and picking up the large old blanket, and trying to get to sleep.

She was used to it, the dark, the cold, the loneliness…but she hated it.

She mostly wished she was not a sorceress, she wished she could just live a normal life. Most young women her age had married by now, settled into happy lives and more than anything Rinoa wanted that. But it was unlikely she would ever find it. Even if she ever stopped running, no man would marry a sorceress, no man would love her…

The moment she closed her eyes, aloud thumping on the door forced them open again. As soon as she heard the sound she was full of fear.

"Open the door Witch!" called a man from outside.

Rinoa ducked down, just as two soldiers with flaming torches peered into the window.

"break it down" she heard one say to the others, and within seconds, the old door broke down and she found herself face to face with soldiers.

"we got her now." One said "no more running, witch."

Rinoa stood up and attempted to run for the other door, but the soldiers moved quickly and grabbed her.

"You are not getting out of here." One hissed

"You will die like the rest of your disgusting kind." Said one, drawing and pointing his sword at her.

"Wait." the first one said "You know what he wants. He said he wants them taken to him alive."

"Fine" he sighed, lowering the sword "Lets get her out of here then"

Rinoa could not let them get her, she knew all to well what would happen. She'd be hung, or burnt alive…….

She chanted a few words and a bright light appeared in the room suddenly, blinding the soldiers for a moment.

"What the hell!?" one cried, covering his eyes. Rinoa broke out of their grip, but was stopped by another soldier at the door. He took a small knife form his belt, and put it to her throat.

"Do not try a thing" he whispered, pressing the metal against her skin.

Rinoa did not know whether it was worth trying to escape again, but she didn't want to die. It was not fair, she was a sorceress yes, but she hardly used her powers, and never to hurt people.

She struggled against the soldier and eventually got free. She ran across to grab her things, her charms and her potions, and the money. She needed them Without selling the charms she would have no possible way of living.

But before she could get there she was stopped and the other soldier picked up all her stuff and threw it on the fire. That was her life. That was all she had. There was not really much point trying to escape now as she had no way of living anyway. But as though nature was on her side, a bolt of lightening struck the skies at that moment and thunder rumbled, distracting the soldiers. She pushed past them quickly out of the doorway and ran out, locking the door from the outside. Then she ran away, sobbing. She had no idea where to go or what to do now…………….

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Squall Leonhart woke up, beads of sweat dripping down his forehead and chest.

That was one of the strangest dreams he had ever had. That girl, that poor girl. He had absolutely no idea what the dream was supposed to mean, or why it had been so vivid….but it was scary.

They way those soldiers had been so close to killing that girl, a witch….it was such a strange thing to dream about. Squall never usually had dreams at all, but this one seemed so real, so vivid….he could feel it as if he were there, as if it was real. It was like something that was happening somewhere and he was watching it, that is bow real it felt to him. The imagination was a strange thing to him. He had dreamed up something so real and yet so surreal at the same time. Something irrelevant to him. Everyday, news was heard about the sorceress hunt, he had to assume that he had just let that creep into his dreams and his imagination had played upon it. That was the only explanation.

Looking around, he saw it was still night so he lay down and tried to get back to sleep.

But he couldn't. He was still slightly disturbed by the dream. What if he dreamt again of something similar?

"Do not be ridiculous" he muttered to himself. "it was only a dream."

He lay back down and shut his eyes, soon drifting into sleep. But he tossed and turned as images once again filled his head.

_The girl, the same girl he had envisioned last time but now…she was just running. Endlessly. She was crying, for every step she ran a tear seemed to fall. Eventually she grew tired and stopped running, taking shelter under a large tree. She leant against it and cradled her head in her arms as she cried. But soon, a young man approached the girl from behind, he was not a soldier though. His face was obscured by the darkness though, and all that could be seen was his outline and some of his fair hair Before he reached the girl she appeared to sense his presence, and turned around._

"_You!" She said fearfully, "you again!"_

"_Rinoa.." the man said, his voice deep and serious._

_The girl chanted something to herself and a thin shield of blue light appeared briefly between her and the man. He tried to take a step towards her, but he couldn't. it was as if there was some fart of invisible blockade between them._

"_Stop following me! I have seen you several times. Leave me alone!" she said before running again into the night. And she ran and ran for what seemed like forever…….._

"Squall?..Squall?" Squall felt someone prodding him in the shoulder.

Flicking his eyes open he saw the room was filled with light. It was morning, and yet Squall did not feel rested at all, he felt exhausted….those dreams

"Squall? Are you ill?" Zell was saying, while prodding him "it is mid-day"

"Midday?" Squall muttered. How long had he been asleep?

"Yes! And there is someone here to see you, I do not know who he is though."

"Alright, I…I will be out in a moment."

Zell nodded and left the room and Squall took a few deep breaths and brushed his hair out of his eyes. He was still unnerved…but why? It was all a dream.

"It was only a dream" he found himself repeating several times as he got up and dressed. But before he left the room, something caught his eye. The rose, with the small charm hanging from it. He didn't remember leaving it out, but there it lay, under the window. And from it, one single petal had fell and lay next to it.

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**Hmmm…odd huh. Well I hope you liked the chapter, we are kinda getting into the main story now. Let me know what you think and I will continue if you guys want me to. Thanks x**


	4. The legend of the Knight

**Disclaimer: the usual**

**A/N: hiya. Heres some more. Btw I love all the theories you have all sugestes on the meaning of the rose. you are all getting close! Thanks to lilnaych hououza, teresa pham. Acho111, r, EmoDiva, Leonharted, leonhartilly, Rinny Leonheart, Ookami Fuu. You all rock lots ! So read on if you like…**

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**S**quall stepped into the main room to see a middle aged man waiting for him. When Squall entered he rose and extended his hand "Good day. I am General Karlson."

Squall nodded to acknowledge the man, but did not take his hand. He was not yet sure if he entirely trusted this man, there was just something about him.

"Are you Squall, son of Laguna Loire?"

"Yes." Squall said sharply. Why did people always want to talk about his father?

"I believe you could be of great help to us."

"Really. And why is that?"

"Well it is well known, that your father was a legendary soldier and I have heard you very much inherited his skill with a sword."

Squall knew this was true. He had spent a lot of time training, despite not being a soldier himself. When he was young, one thing he remembered his father doing, was training with swords. Squall had admired his power and control and desperately wanted to learn the skill, but his father always told him he was not allowed near a weapon until he was older. But when Laguna disappeared one of the first things Squall did was pick up one of those swords.

"What of it?" Squall said, dismissing the memories.

"Well as you know, we are eager to eliminate the sorceresses and the new leader has become insistent we increase the speed of the hunt."

"New leader? Who is he?"

"I do not know. It is all very secretive, the orders are merely passed down to me. But it is his wish that we gather every remaining sorceress and have them all by the Twilight eve, which gives us.."

"Exactly 4 months today I believe" Squall said.

"Yes. And on that sacred day, these witches will be burnt, sacrificed. A symbol of evil being cleansed form our world. But 4 months is not along time Squall, I believe someone of your skills could be useful to us. We have come close many times to catching these witches, but they escape our soldiers as they are not trained enough to capture them."

"So you wish me to help you hunt these women?"

"Yes, I do."

Squall was all set to answer, but he found himself starting to hesitate. He found himself thinking about…his dream. He had never had any sympathies for the sorceresses. Most of them were inhumane, evil…but he had dreamt of one who did not seem it, he dreamt of the pain that this hunt was causing. The fear, the anxiety. Even if it was only a dream, it was what prevented him from accepting..

"No." Said Squall "I don't wish to help you."

The general looked shocked "Squall, surely you do not support the sorceresses, surely you want them gone also."

"Very much. But I value my own life and these witches…they are dangerous."  
"Very well then" the man said stiffly " then I suppose I have no further business here…"

"No" Squall said leaving the room "You do not."

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Rinoa awoke to find herself laying in a completely unfamiliar room, and she sat up, instantly scared. Where was she? How had she gotten here?

Looking around, Rinoa saw an older women placing coal onto the fire.

"Who are you?" Rinoa asked nervously

The woman looked up and smiled "Ahh you are awake. My name is Cella."

"I'm Rinoa. How did I get here?" she asked timidly.

The woman tucked a strand of her greying hair behind her ear.

"You were running, but you fainted, exhaustion I would imagine. I was out walking and I saw you it was the early hours of the morning, so I brought you here. You were not safe out in the darkness."

"But…why were you out at such hours?"

"I do not fear the darkness. I find it quite calming. And I find night the best time to gather my herbs for my potions."

"Are you a…"

"A sorceress? Yes I am dear, just like you are."

Rinoa could not help but wonder how she had known.

"Are you wondering how I know?" asked Cella looking a little amused.

"Are you reading my thoughts?" Rinoa asked. She had heard that this was a rare ability that only some sorceresses had.

"No no child, just the expressions on your face. Sometimes what is obvious is more magical than magic itself. Your expressions, they tell your story like magic never could. And I can also sense your power as no doubt you will sense mine. Here.." the woman handed Rinoa a small glass bottle "Drink that, you will feel better."

Rinoa drank the potion and then held the bottle nervously in her hands. "Thank you so much."

"No problem at all. We must stick together or the vile soldiers will have their way and we will disappear forever." Rinoa watched as the elegant woman walked over to a small cupboard and took out a loaf of bread. "You must be hungry" she said as she cut the bread, and then poured soup form a pan into two bowls.

"Here, keep up your strength." she said as she handed her the food.

Rinoa felt incredibly lucky to have encountered this woman. As they ate they spoke of various things about being a sorceress.

"The persecution, I wonder if it will ever end." Rinoa said.

"I imagine not. People are very closed minded. They see us as evil."

"I suppose even if we are never caught we will be permanently on the run. We will always be lonely, never with the chance for family or friends or love."

"Well, that is dependant on if you believe in the power of the Knight." Cella answered

"The knight?"

"Ahh. I take it form your puzzled expression you have yet to find yours. A knight, it is said, is a man whose true love for a sorceress will protect and save her from all danger. They say every sorceress needs a knight for without them, they will be corrupted and become mad."

Rinoa had briefly heard the mention of Sorceress' Knights before but had never heard much of the story behind it.

"Do…do you have a Knight?" Rinoa asked Cella

"I did…but he passed away. But I believe the love that we shared was more than enough to keep me protected and sane until the end of my days."

"I have no one" Rinoa said sadly.

"At the moment. But that is not to say you will never find one. It is believed as with normal people, sorceresses too have one true love out there, one soul mate. This person is our Knight. The only problem is not all sorceresses get to find their knight.Of course, it all originated form a Legend…."

"A legend?" Rinoa asked

"Yes, have you not heard it? The Legend of the Sorceress Yonia, and her great Knight."

"No. Would…would you tell me it?" Rinoa asked shyly.

"Of course. Yonia Telamria is said to be the first documented Sorceress. When her powers were discovered, the King sent an army of his Finest Knights after her. The leader of these Knights was Lord Atoi. But it is aid that when he found her he was so captivated by her beauty and innocence that he allowed her to escape. When the King found out what he had done, Lord Atoi was banished from the Kingdom for his treachery. But in the next town, he crossed paths once again with Yonia. She was being chased by a mob, and in order to save her, he fought these people. He then took it upon himself to protect her and gradually they fell in love and after that they were never separated. And he is believed to be the first ever Knight from which the tradition stemmed. His and Yonia son went on to become Knight to another sorceress. And so knights were born form many lines. Of course there is no way to tell if a man is destined to be a knight, but it is believed certain men are destined for a certain sorceress. So there is someone out there who is destined to be your Knight, your hero."

For some reason just hearing that story brought tears to Rinoas eyes. She had never really thought about there being someone destined for her. But it gave her, in a small way, some hope. Maybe one day she would find her Knight.

Later in the evening Rinoa went into the nearby village. Cella assured her she was quite safe as the soldiers had passed through the town recently and moved on. She gave Rinoa money to buy some things she may need when she left to continue her journey. Rinoa felt safe in the village, it was if no one noticed or cared she was a sorceress. It was the tolerance she had always longed for.

It had been quite a walk form Cells house, So Rinoa headed back just as darkness fell. She did not want to be out too late in the pitch black night. But when she returned she noticed the door was ajar.

"Cella" she called nervously.

But she gasped in shock when she stepped inside the house. The place had been destroyed and Cella lay slumped on the floor, a bleeding wound in her stomach.

"Cella!" Rinoa cried running over to her. "What happened? The soldiers??"

Cella weakly shook her head. "No…a young man…I did not know him. And there….there was a woman…the strangest silver hair…and that man, his scar.."

"Was he blonde?" Rinoa asked. For so long now she had been being followed by a young blonde man with a scar that ran across the top of his nose. Rinoa never knew why he was following her, because he wasn't a soldier. But he was certainly evil. He had done this.

"He was searching for you. He knew your name…he claimed it was urgent and he became impatient.."

"I am so sorry" Rinoa cried

"Do not be my child. I have lived a happy life. But take this.." she handed Rinoa a small blue crystal "Good luck." she whispered before her eyes fell closed.

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**Poor Cella. I think its clear who the guy following Rinoa is now….anyway hope you liked it and I'll add more soon if ya want. Let me know what ya think. xx**


	5. Dreaming

**A/N: hey! Remember this story??? Sorry it took so long to update, I have been away and then having lots of things going on but I'm back now. Really hope you enjoy the chapter and so many thanks to all those who have reviewed and read and supported me so far. Enjoy!**

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"Are you alright Squall? You have been acting strangely all day." Zell said to his friend.

"I am fine." Squall said, rubbing his eyes "Just tired."

The night before had been yet another sleepless one for Squall. He had once again been disturbed by mysterious dreams. Since that first dream, he had some sort of dream each night. Sometimes they were fragmented, only flashes of things happening, and other nights they were continuous unfolding events and they seemed to last forever. But each night they had gotten worse, more like nightmares.

"Zell." Squall said reluctantly, "Do you know anything about dreams?"

Squall knew as soon as he said it he had probably just started Zell on a topic that would keep him talking for hours.

Zell was innately fascinated by all things magical, mystical and spiritual and tended to be somewhat of a know it all on the subject..

"Of course. What about them?"

"I've just been having strange dreams lately, continually. I keep dreaming about the same sort of thing."

"Well, dreams are said to represent something in our inner selves or our hearts. We dream people and places, give faces and names to our thoughts, create stories to display these thoughts."

"I suppose. But it seems too real. These dreams are far too vivid to be normal. And sometimes they are frightening, it seems sometimes they are not completely fictional."

"Well there are some people, rare people though, who can see the future through dreams, events that haven't been yet, but that is highly unlikely. What are these dreams about?"

"A girl. She is a sorceress, being hunted by the soldiers, but there is someone else following her to. And she keeps running, sometimes they find her but then she runs again. Last night I dreamt of her again. She is so lost and she is all alone and she is becoming sick from the exhaustion of constantly running. It is so strange though these dreams follow on every night, like a story that stops and then starts again when I sleep. There are always things that have gone in between that I don't understand. It is like I am dreaming someones' whole life."

"That sounds very strange to me. There are many explanations for the girl, but none for the sequence and clarity of the dreams. It sounds kind of confusing. I think you need to see someone more experienced in these matters. There is a psychic in town, she is hiding because of the hunt, but I believe she could help you.

"No. I am not going to a psychic, they are all fakes. Besides its like you said, its all in my head, I just need to forget it."

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But that night things became even stranger for Squall. When he closed his eyes he was expecting-with dread- to see another strange event in his little 'dream world'. But he didn't. All he saw in front of him was a field, a vast open field. The green grass was hiding flowers of pale yellow and dusky pink and the sun was shimmering down.

It was a beautiful scene, but then suddenly the sky darkened and rain started to fall down, soaking the grass and the flowers. This was surreal, and even in Squalls sleep he felt confused. What was going on? And things only got stranger. Darkness settled and the moon and stars rose as if night, but after a few seconds the sun rose, travelled across the sky and set again, bringing the beginning of night. It was like days and nights were passing at a rapid speed. At that point, there was a whisper that echoed in Squalls head "Help me" the soft voice kept echoing before fading into nothing.

More days and nights appeared to pass and the whisper kept appearing and disappearing.

"Help me…I need you."

Squall, as if consciously observing this while unconscious, tried to force himself to wake up and it seemed he was succeeding. The scene started to fade and the voice became quieter "Don't leave me! I need you…."

Squall felt his eyes start to flicker open and he was practically awake, but just before he woke up he heard the voice one more time "you're my only hope."

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"Rinoa, wake up!" Rinoa felt herself being shaken gently. Opening her eyes, she saw a familiar face. Selphie was a young woman who had taken Rinoa in and allowed her to stay after encountering each other in the local village. She lived in quite a large house just on the outskirts of a place called Winhill, a tiny place. Her husband, Irvine, was the local doctor for the village, and thus they were quite wealthy.

"Rinoa, are you alright?" she asked

"I am fine, thank you."

"You we're talking in your sleep."

"I was?" She asked. Rinoa usually remembered her dreams, but this time it was different, it was a complete blank. "What did I say?"

"It was like you were talking to somebody. You kept saying 'help me, I need you.' and you said 'you're my only hope'. What on earth were you dreaming about?"

"I can hardly remember. If I try very hard, I vaguely remember something of a field and it was like day and night kept passing but I don't remember talking to anyone. It is very strange."

"Well never mind. It was just a dream. They never mean anything." Selphie said.

"Selphie!!" Irvine called, after Rinoa heard the door slam shut "Selphie, where are you?"

"I'm in here." she called as Irvine dashed into the room. "What is it?"

"I was on my way home and I saw them, the soldiers, they are here! They are knocking door to door, searching for sorceresses!"

"Oh no! what do we do!" Rinoa panicked

"Well you should hide, just in case." Selphie said "And I'll think of something"

But Selphie did not have much time to think as the sudden sound of knocking signalled the arrival of the soldiers.

"Quickly, hide!"

Rinoa did as Selphie said, then listened as she went and opened the front door.

"Yes." she said politely "May I help you.?"

"We are looking for sorceresses. Rumour has it there is one in the village."

"Really? I have not seen any strangers though…"

"May we look inside please?"

"Why?"

"Procedure Miss."

"Ah of course. Except as you know my husband is the doctor of the village and he has not returned home yet. I would feel uncomfortable allowing you to search his house when he is not home. Besides I am sure he would rather me not be here alone with soldiers."

"Perhaps we should come back." one said to the other.

"yes of course." Selphie nodded "Feel free to come back anytime he is home."

"Alright, we will. Sorry to bother you Ma'am"

"it is quite alright. And good luck with your search." She said, before closing and locking the door.

"you can come out now." she then said.

"thank you so much." Rinoa said as she came out form where she had been hiding. "That was too close. I am so grateful for everything you have done for me, but I think perhaps I should leave. If they come again and you are found helping me, they will punish you and its not fair for me to burden you."

"oh nonsense" Selphie said, "stay as long as you need to. I would rather you here than out there were they will definitely find you."

"This hunt is ridiculous." Irvine sighed, "Sorceresses are no threat to us. That is all a myth, they are people too, just like us."

"wow, you are so tolerant. It is so refreshing form everyone elses attitude. How come you are so open minded?"

"Well, about 15 years ago there was a huge purge of the sorceresses, much like now."

"I remember. I was only 5 or so, but I remember vaguely." Rinoa said, as she thought sadly back to that day, the day her father was killed.

"Well I was a child at the time too, I was in an orphanage with a few other children. I do not really remember them, but I do remember our matron. She was so kind and caring, but one day the soldiers came. They suspected she was a sorceress and so…they killed her. Then us children, we were scattered and split across the world. And except for Irvine, I never saw any of them again."

"You two knew each other as children?"

"yes, but we were separated, but as if by fate, we met up again a few years ago."

"That's wonderful." Rinoa said. They had obviously had good luck and good fate. Rinoa was becoming increasingly sure fate intended her nothing but a life full of misery. It was to hard to find people to accept her, this couple were such a rarity. Nobody else would ever understand. She could never find a husband or a home or settle down and have a peaceful life. Thinks like that were all pointless, empty dreams.

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**There we go!! Well…again sorry about the wait. Next chapter Squall goes to see the psychic and discovers some very interesting things. Hope you enjoyed!**


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